Beginning Sunday, The News Herald is publishing its annual countdown of the top 10 stories of the year. These were the stories editors felt were the most important in Bay County in 2012. The series will end on Jan. 1, 2013, with the top story of the year. On that day, The News Herald also will publish the list of top 10 stories as ranked by our readers in our online poll.

Smoke billows from an oil rig fire after the 2010 Deepwater Horizon accident.

AP Photo

By VALERIE GARMAN / The News Herald

Published: Saturday, December 22, 2012 at 06:58 PM.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — The passage of the RESTORE Act in 2012 could mean big bucks for Bay County in 2013.

Local officials have recognized the act as an opportunity to change the Panhandle like no one has ever seen, with billions of dollars expected to flow straight into Gulf Coast communities.

Under RESTORE — which stands for Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourism Opportunities and Revived Economies — the Gulf Coast is entitled to 80 percent of the penalties BP is expected to pay under Clean Water Act for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The dollar amount coming is still unknown, but lawmakers estimate the fines could range from $5 billion to $21 billion. A federal trial is set to begin Feb. 25 in New Orleans to determine the amount of fines levied against BP.

Once appropriated, the five affected states will split 35 percent of the penalties; in Florida the allotted amount is being split among the affected Gulf Coast counties based on the severity of oil spill impact to be used for ecological and economic restoration of counties.

Floridais unique in the RESTORE process as the only one of the five Gulf Coast states to send the money directly to the affected counties. The eight disproportionately impacted counties will receive 75 percent of the funds and includes Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay, Gulf, Franklin and Wakulla counties.

Bay County Commissioner Mike Thomas has said he expects $30 - $50 million to come to Bay County.

PANAMA CITY BEACH — The passage of the RESTORE Act in 2012 could mean big bucks for Bay County in 2013.

Local officials have recognized the act as an opportunity to change the Panhandle like no one has ever seen, with billions of dollars expected to flow straight into Gulf Coast communities.

Under RESTORE — which stands for Resources and Ecosystems Sustainability, Tourism Opportunities and Revived Economies — the Gulf Coast is entitled to 80 percent of the penalties BP is expected to pay under Clean Water Act for the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

The dollar amount coming is still unknown, but lawmakers estimate the fines could range from $5 billion to $21 billion. A federal trial is set to begin Feb. 25 in New Orleans to determine the amount of fines levied against BP.

Once appropriated, the five affected states will split 35 percent of the penalties; in Florida the allotted amount is being split among the affected Gulf Coast counties based on the severity of oil spill impact to be used for ecological and economic restoration of counties.

Floridais unique in the RESTORE process as the only one of the five Gulf Coast states to send the money directly to the affected counties. The eight disproportionately impacted counties will receive 75 percent of the funds and includes Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, Bay, Gulf, Franklin and Wakulla counties.

Bay County Commissioner Mike Thomas has said he expects $30 - $50 million to come to Bay County.

The RESTORE Act was signed by President Obama in July, and was followed by a subsequent whirlwind as elected officials in 23 Florida counties, Bay included, scrambled to form committees to figure out the best way to utilize the funding.

The County Commission voted in October to join the RESTORE Act Gulf Consortium, which will allow them to work with other affected Florida counties in pursuing fines and creating specific restoration projects.

In November, BP pleaded guilty to 14 criminal charges, and was mandated to pay $4 billion over the next five years. Now lawmakers have pushed for swift movement as BP gets closer to settling in civil court.

Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Panama City, expressed concern that the Obama Administration would shift more of the funds toward the federal NaturalResource Damage Assessment process, and away from RESTORE.

Southerland, who was a major force in Washington behind the passage of the RESTORE Act, released the following statement after the announcement of BP’s criminal penalties:

“While the (Obama) administration has acted aggressively to secure a settlement of BP criminal penalties, our Gulf Coast communities deserve a similar commitment in resolving civil damages through the framework established by the RESTORE Act. These critically important civil fine monies should not be sacrificed in order to achieve a swift resolution to the criminal charges.”

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